Dozens In Tri-State Area Sickened From Bacterial Infection Linked To Contaminated Syringes
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — Health departments in the tri-state area are on high alert after dozens of people got sick from a bacterial infection linked to contaminated medical syringes.
CBS Philly's Anita Oh reports there are 149 cases in multiple states of the bacterial infection Burkholderia cepacia – a germ typically found in soil and water. As of last week, there are currently 52 cases of the bacterial infection in New Jersey, 26 in Pennsylvania and four in Delaware. The rest were found in New York and Maryland.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention linked the multi-state outbreak to pre-filled syringes from the Texas-based company Nurse Assist, which voluntarily recalled those products in early October. The outbreak was first identified in late September and any facility using those syringes in question were told then to stop their use and send them back to the manufacturer.
"It's likely there is some problem in the manufacturing of the salt water syringe, or it was not adequately sterilized," said Dr. Neil Fishman, an infectious disease expert at Penn Medicine.
Most of the confirmed cases have been in patients at long-term care or rehabilitation facilities.
Fishman said the bacteria can be resistant to the first line of antibiotics and symptoms may vary, but that it largely affects those with weakened immune systems or cystic fibrosis.
"There really isn't a risk of it being transferred person to person," said Fishman. "The only risk is if there's ongoing use of the contaminated syringe." Experts say there is no risk to anyone unless the syringe was inserted directly into their bloodstream via IV or catheter.
Nurse Assist said in a statement that "patient safety is the number-one priority."
"We have been working in cooperation with the CDC, FDA, and various State Health Departments to ensure patient safety," the company said.
There have been six deaths out of these cases, but health officials said it's not clear whether the bacterial infection caused those deaths, or by patients' underlying conditions.
